The advance of the Russian Empire to the North Caucasus in the first half of the 19th century is still a topical issue. The article reveals the contribution of Russian military topographers to the political, scientific and economic study of the new territory. Since the first half of the XIX century the process of the North Caucasus joining the Russian Empire began. The region had an important geopolitical significance, so it was necessary to incorporate this territory into the unified economic and political body of the country as soon as possible. The army played an important role in solving this task, and not always only in the military aspect. The new civilian administration relied on the military in its activities. They had to participate in the process of scientific development of the North Caucasus region. Russian officers, who were seconded to the Caucasus, unwittingly began to explore new territories. Being educated people, they were keenly interested in the new ethno-cultural world with its values, traditions and ways of life. During the years of the Caucasian War, the military leadership realized that without reliable information about the local people, the location of settlements and fortresses, it was impossible to count on success in combat operations, and in the future – on building a system of governance in the Caucasus. The scientific development of the North Caucasus began with the study of the area by military topographers of the General Staff of the Russian Empire. Their work was limited to mapping the land through surveys. In addition to their official duties, topographers, often on their own initiative, conducted scientific research, based on which they later published historical works, memoirs, poems and novels. Both the General Staff and the country’s leadership actively supported such initiative of officers. The collected by the military was used in the development of combat operations and in the organization of peaceful life after the war. The information about the Caucasus had applied and scientific value. The work of the topographers formed the basis of an ethnographic work written with the assistance of Emperor Nicholas I in the 30s of the 19th century. The author who gathered all the accumulated materials together was I.F. Blaramberg. His monograph contained a wealth of information about the culture, customs, rites, traditions and occupations of the peoples of the North Caucasus. The statistical data collected by the General Staff made it possible to assess the economic condition of the annexed territories.